Paste squeezing tool

ABSTRACT

A paste squeezing tool that allows a user to apply additional manual pressure to the tool so that all of the contents within the tube are squeezed out. The paste squeezing tool is composed of three parts. The first part is a flat body that has a top and a bottom side. The flat body defines a central aperture that traverses along the length of the longest side of the flat body. The aperture is of a width that allows the sealed end of a tube that holds paste to pass through the central aperture. A second part of the squeezing tool is defined on the top side of the flat body, it is a circular mound that extends from the flat body so that it is centered on the flat body. The circular mound defines a mound aperture that runs parallel to the central aperture, the mound aperture is defined so that it tapers from an apex of the mound aperture toward the flat body. The third part of the squeezing tool is a pair of elongated walls that are parallel to each other and that extend from the bottom side of the flat body at an angle of ninety degrees. The elongated walls are positioned on the bottom side of the flat body so that they are adjacent to the central aperture of the flat body.

CROSS REFERENCE

The present application claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application filed 2016 Jan. 12 by the same inventor. The entire contents of the provisional application is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present invention is directed to tools that are used for squeezing paste out of flexible tubes that have one sealed end and a narrow nozzle, such as a tubes that contain toothpaste.

The present invention is used to ensure that the majority, if not all, of the contents within a flexible tube are squeezed out of the tube. The device of the present invention provides a user with a means to apply additional pressure to a tube as the tube is passed through the squeezing part of a paste squeezing device. The means is manipulated by the user of the device.

Efforts have been made in the past to provide paste squeezing tools that squeeze paste from a flexible tube, they are as follows:

United States Patent Application 20040040981, applied by Hafeez, Mian, on Mar. 4, 2004, discloses a Plastic squeeze tube squeezer (PSTS). It relates to a Plastic Squeeze Tube Squeezer (PSTS) as a tool to squeeze nearly all the contents (paste like materials e.g. tooth paste) packaged in plastic squeeze tubes. The Hafeez device does not disclose a means for applying additional pressure to the tube as the tube is squeezed through the squeezing part of the device.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,593, issued to Patronaggio, on Jan. 12, 1999, discloses a collapsible flexible tube squeezing device. The flexible device for efficiently emptying the viscous contents of a flexible, plastic tube having a longitudinal, overlapping, sealed seam. The flexible device is a generally planar, elongated body having a slot of shorter length extending entirely through the body. The slot has a wider entrance and tapers to a narrower exit to allow an embossed, flattened and sealed end of the plastic, flexible, walled tube to be inserted, and to enable the flexible device to be pushed along the plastic, flexible, walled tube and to have the slot of the device stay in position by a spring-like, clamping action of the slot with the knife-like scrapping rear edge, gripping the flattened flexible wall tube. The Patronaggio device does not disclose a means for applying additional pressure to the tube as the tube is squeezed through the squeezing part of the device.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,071,036, issued to Kelly et al., on Dec. 10, 199, discloses an Extrusion aid. The extrusion aid comprises a strip of material which is desirably a low friction material such as a polymer, but nevertheless sufficiently rigid to deform the flexible wall of a tube containing paste or fluid contents, and the strip is provided with an elongate slot which is wider at its ends than intermediate its ends, and may terminate in part-circular walls. If the part-circular walls are spaced apart to accommodate the edges of a tube after extrusion takes place, the extrusion aid will be less likely to grip those edges and furthermore the aid will be easily positioned over the tube. The Kelly device does not disclose a means for applying additional pressure to the tube as the tube is squeezed through the squeezing part of the device.

For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a paste squeezing tool that will allow a user to apply additional manual pressure to the tool in order to squeeze all of the contents out of a paste tube.

SUMMARY

The present invention is directed to a paste squeezing tool that allows a user to apply additional manual pressure to the tool so that all of the contents within the tube are squeezed out. The paste squeezing tool is composed of three parts. The first part is a flat body that has a top and a bottom side. The flat body defines a central aperture that traverses along the length of the longest side of the flat body. The aperture is of a width that allows the closed end of a tube that holds paste to pass through the aperture. A second part of the squeezing tool is defined on the top side of the flat body, it is a circular mound that extends from the flat body so that it is centered on the flat body. The circular mound defines a mound aperture that runs parallel to the central aperture, the mound aperture is defined so that it tapers from an apex of the mound aperture toward the flat body. The third part of the squeezing tool is a pair of elongated walls that are parallel to each other and that extend from the bottom side of the flat body at an angle of ninety degrees. The elongated walls are positioned on the bottom side of the flat body so that they are adjacent to the central aperture of the flat body.

The elongated walls of the present invention allow a user of the squeezing tool to apply pressure to the walls with his fingers so that an additional pressure is applied to a flexible tube as it is passed through the central aperture. The mound of the present invention is designed to push the contents of the flexible tube through the nozzle of the tube.

An object of the present invention is to provide a paste squeezing tool that will maximize the content that is squeezed out of a flexible tube.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a paste squeezing tool that is reusable and that is designed to be easily held by a user when squeezing the contents out of a flexible tube.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a paste squeezing tool that will allow the user to control the pressure that is applied to a flexible tube as the flexible tube is being passed through the apertures of the squeezing tool.

DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and drawings where:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a side view of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION

As seen in FIGS. 1-3, the present invention is a paste squeezing tool 100. The paste squeezing tool 100 comprises of three main parts. The first part is a flat body 10 that has a top 10 a and a bottom side 10 b. The flat body 10 defines a central aperture 24 that traverses along the length of the longest side of the flat body 10. The central aperture 24 is of a width that allows the sealed end of a tube to pass through the central aperture 24. A second part of the squeezing tool 100 is defined on the top side of the flat body 10, it is a circular mound 20 that extends from the flat body 10 so that it is centered on the flat body 10. The circular mound 20 defines a mound aperture 22 that runs parallel to the central aperture 24, the mound aperture 22 is defined so that it tapers from an apex of the mound aperture 20 toward the flat body 10. The third part of the squeezing tool 100 is a pair of elongated walls 30 that are parallel to each other and that extend from the bottom side of the flat body 10 at an angle of ninety degrees. The elongated walls 30 are positioned on the bottom side of the flat body 10 so that they are adjacent to the central aperture 24 of the flat body 10.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the width of the central aperture is approximately 0.028 inch and the length is approximately 2.5 inches. The width of the mound aperture at the apex is approximately 0.080 inches and the diameter 1 inch. The length of the flat structure is approximately 3 inches. The length of the elongated walls is approximately 1.75 inches and the height is approximately 0.5 inches.

An embodiment of the present invention is made of plastic polymers. Other embodiments of the present invention may be made of stainless steel.

The present invention is used by inserting sealed end of a flexible paste tube through the central aperture 24, then pulling the sealed end of the tube through the central aperture 24 while applying pressure to the elongated walls 30 of the paste squeezing tool 100.

An advantage of the present invention is that it provides a paste squeezing tool that maximizes the content that is squeezed out of a flexible tube.

Another advantage of the present invention is that it provides a paste squeezing tool that is reusable and that is designed to be easily held by a user when squeezing the contents out of a flexible tube.

Yet another advantage of the present invention is that it provides a paste squeezing tool that allows the user to control the pressure that is applied to a flexible tube as the flexible tube is being passed through the apertures of the squeezing tool.

While the inventor's above description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope, but rather as an exemplification of several preferred embodiments thereof. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A paste squeezing tool that is used to squeeze paste out of a flexible tube that has one sealed end a nozzle, the paste squeezing tool comprises: a flat body that has a top and a bottom side, the flat body defines a central aperture that traverses along the length of the longest side of the flat body, the central aperture is of a width that allows the sealed end of a tube to pass through the central aperture; a circular mound that is defined on the top side of the flat body that extends from the flat body so that it is centered on the flat body, the circular mound defines a mound aperture that runs parallel to the central aperture, the mound aperture is defined so that it tapers from an apex of the mound aperture 20 toward the flat body; and a pair of elongated walls that are parallel to each other and that extend from the bottom side of the flat body at an angle of ninety degrees, the elongated walls are positioned on the bottom side of the flat body so that they are adjacent to the central aperture of the flat body.
 2. The paste squeezing tool that is used to squeeze paste out of a flexible tube that has one sealed end a nozzle of claim 1, wherein the central aperture has a width that is approximately 0.028 inch and a length is approximately 2.5 inches, wherein the mound aperture at its apex has a width that is approximately 0.080 inches and a diameter that is approximately 1 inch, wherein flat structure has a length that is approximately 3 inches, and wherein the elongated walls have a length that is approximately 1.75 inches and a height that is approximately 0.5 inches.
 3. The paste squeezing tool that is used to squeeze paste out of a flexible tube that has one sealed end a nozzle of claim 2, wherein the tool is made of a plastic.
 4. The paste squeezing tool that is used to squeeze paste out of a flexible tube that has one sealed end a nozzle of claim 2, wherein the tool is made of a stainless steel. 